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National Student Efficiency Contest Winners Named

The Energy Department on May 2 announced the winners of America's Home Energy Education Challenge, a national student competition designed to encourage students and their families to take action to start saving money by saving energy. A team of students from five schools in rural Carter County, Montana, was declared the national winner for successfully working with local utility companies and the community to reduce their home energy use by 3.4%. The five schools will share the $15,000 they won as both a regional winner and as the national champion.

The challenge, run by the National Science Teachers Association for the Energy Department, asked teams of third through eighth grade students to work with their science teachers and local utility companies to develop plans that reduce the amount of energy used to power their homes. Each student team monitored and measured its energy consumption between September and November 2011, then compared it to data collected during the same three-month period the year before.

The challenge included regional competitions, so student teams would face off against teams in similar climates. Regional winners then competed in a national competition, where they were evaluated based on their energy savings plans, energy savings, and levels of student participation, community involvement, and creativity. The four regional winners each received $5,000. They came from Golden, Colorado; Olive Hill, Kentucky; Potomac, Maryland; and Warren, Michigan. See the Energy Department Progress Alert and the list of winners.